If I had joined politics,DLF wouldn't be where it is: KP Singh

KP Singh, chairman of DLF, the country's largest listed real estate firm, does not think of Unitech as a rival, and believes that businessmen can't really run their businesses well if they try to get into politics.

Speaking to Business Standard in an interview (read it here), Singh said: "We never took them as rivals. We have been together.... They are complementary forces."

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As for politics, to which he was once attracted, Singh said his father-in-law advised him against it and he now believes it was the right advice. If he had gone into politics, his business would have suffered. Thus he has no regrets. "If I had taken that decision to join politics, DLF would not have been where it is today," he told the newspaper.

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The idea of entering politics entered his head when he came in contact with the late Rajiv Gandhi and had a run-in with Bansi Lal over land issues in Haryana. But his father-in-law told him that serious business and politics don't mix.

Singh's company is now run by his son and Singh explains that there are differences in working styles. His son is highly educated and, being a young man, is more impulsive. He, on the other hand, was not armed with an MBA and learnt everything the hard way through practical experience.

Talking about the government's current policy paralysis and slowdown in growth, he thought there was no logjam but a revolution towards transparency. The slowdown was also a deliberate effort to tame inflation.

However, he thinks the Reserve Bank should not continue with its hard money policy. "RBI must wear another hat, and ensure a climate conducive for flow of money into business and job creation. This will lift the confidence level of India Inc."